China unveiled the first glimpses of its economic plans for the next five years, emphasizing self-sufficiency in technology as a key factor in managing the fast-changing international environment, reported the South China Morning Post.
The communiqué followed a four-day closed-door meeting didn’t specify the pace of growth that policymakers would target, but Wang Zhigang, Minister of Science and Technology, said at a press conference on Friday that, as China entered a new development phase, it would need a new development concept. “It is the first time that a five-year plan has dedicated a specific chapter to technology,” he said.
But Wang said that driving self-sufficiency in technology did not mean China would shut its doors to the world. Initial details divulged by the Communist Party’s Central Committee Thursday stressed the need for sustainable growth and pledged to develop a robust domestic market.
The new plan elevated China’s self-reliance in technology into a national strategic pillar, a move signaled by officials from President Xi Jinping down in the lead-up to the meeting. Central to that endeavor is self-reliance in semiconductor chips, the building blocks for innovations from artificial intelligence to fifth-generation wireless networking and autonomous vehicles.
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